


Home Sweet Home: What Makes You Happy

by St0rmy



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Author’s opinions on issues in fandom, Blackmail, Boys in love and happy, Damnit I always forget one of them, HSH AU, How the hell did I forget Sky on this one, I don’t even know anymore, I tend to project my anxiety onto Twilight, If AUs can even have canon, Implied homophobia, It’s no secret that Wild is Time’s favorite, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Linked Universe Townhouse AU, M/M, Not Townhouse AU canon, Nothing explicit, Somebody gets smacked, Unconditional Love and Acceptance, Wild is a sweet innocent bby, Wind is a Little Shit, found family fluff, linkcest - Freeform, referenced homophobia, response fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-16 12:00:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28706313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/St0rmy/pseuds/St0rmy
Summary: “Do you think he’d be mad?”“‘Dunno.”“...He might not be, though, right?”“‘Dunno.”Wild hummed quietly, and Twilight could tell by his tone that he was struggling to remain calm.“Do you think he’d kick us out?”It’s hard to keep secrets in a townhouse full of nosy roommates. The first time Twilight and Wild got caught wasn’t that big of a deal, but the second time...
Relationships: Link/Link (Legend of Zelda), Linkcest, Twilight/Wild (Linked Universe)
Comments: 46
Kudos: 145





	Home Sweet Home: What Makes You Happy

**Author's Note:**

> It has been brought to my attention that some people are posting Linkcest fics starring the boys from my Townhouse AU series, some more innocent than others. Linkcest is taboo in the LU fandom, and there has been some recent drama surrounding that on Discord and elsewhere. Some people have been speculating about my feelings on the situation, and I thought I would address it in the best way I can. 
> 
> Let me tell you a story.

The first time they got caught wasn’t that big of a deal. 

“Twilight, you in there?”

He snorted as he startled awake. Bedsheets and blankets were tangled around his legs, and the pillow beneath his face was damp with drool. The bedroom was pitch black. The knock sounded far away, but his head was pounding and his mouth tasted nasty. He felt a little dizzy as he sat up in bed. 

“Get up, man, breakfast is ready.”

Twilight shuffled across the bedroom in the dark, tripping over a discarded shoe as he reached for the doorknob. The hallway was dazzlingly bright. Twilight stumbled out into the hall, blinking several times to adjust, feeling just a little dizzier as he did. 

“Twilight?”

Four’s voice came from his left. Twilight turned to find Four openly staring at him from down the hall. 

From in front of Twilight’s bedroom, three doors down. 

Because he’d spent the night with Wild, whose bedroom didn’t get any morning sun, which was what usually got Twilight up in the mornings. Wild had gotten up earlier to start breakfast, while Twilight remained facedown in the pillows. 

Twilight was suddenly wide fucking awake.

But Four couldn’t be less bothered. Mildly surprised, maybe, but he merely smirked as he passed Twilight by on his way back down the stairs. 

“Put a shirt on, cowboy. You’re going to miss out on pancakes.”

***

The second time they got caught was a bit more serious. 

With nine people in the townhouse, it was often difficult to find privacy. The common areas of the house were usually occupied by at least one roommate, and at any given time there were one or two boys on the second floor. That made it hard to sneak in and out of bedrooms discreetly.

Sometimes they had no control over when or where the mood would strike. 

When a bit of casual flirting in the kitchen got to be too much, Twilight excused himself to the living room, Wild following seconds later. The couch scraped along the floor as they fell onto it together, already tangled up in one another. 

They struggled to stay silent as things quickly became hot and heavy. Wild tasted like sweet jam, and Twilight laughed into his mouth because he was just  _ so happy, _ and Wild’s weight on top of Twilight was both relieving and maddening, and Twilight’s hands were sneaking beneath his shirt to slide up his ribs—

The rapid click of a camera caused them to freeze. 

Wild sat up, both of them turning toward the living room doorway where Wind stood, phone in hand, a massive shit-eating grin on his face. 

So Twilight gave chase. He scrambled up the two flights of stairs as quietly as a grown man could. He caught up to Wind just as the shorter boy reached his bedroom door, grabbing his shoulder and whispering through his teeth:

_ “Delete those right now.” _

Wind turned to smile at him antagonistically, reaching for his bedroom door and gently pushing it open. “Gee, I would, Twi,” he whispered, the door creaking open slowly, “but they’re already in the cloud.” 

Twilight glanced into his room where his multitude of desktop monitors already displayed the incriminating photos he’d just taken. 

Harrowed, Twilight grabbed his bedroom door and pulled it shut again. He grabbed Wind by the collar, pinning him to the wall. “You vicious little snake—”

“What’s going on here?”

Time pulled the door to his study closed, an empty mug of coffee in hand and a disapproving glare on his face. Twilight straightened up, clearing his throat. 

“Just a little disagreement,” Wind replied smugly, pushing Twilight’s hands off of him. 

“We don’t engage in  _ physical _ disagreements in this house.” Time narrowed his eye at Twilight. “You know better than that.”

Twilight bit his tongue, resisting the urge to point out Time’s hypocrisy, and merely nodded.

Time started down the stairs toward the first floor, and Twilight listened for his footsteps to fade down the second staircase. “Wind, this isn’t funny,” he hissed, turning and grabbing Wind’s collar again. “If  _ he _ finds out, we could get kicked out of the house—”

“And that’s exactly why you should keep your hands off of me,” Wind coolly responded. 

Twilight and Wind stood still and tense for several moments in a stalemate of wills. Finally, Twilight relinquished his hold on Wind’s collar, flexing his fists at his sides. 

“What do you want?”

***

“Do you think he’d be mad?”

“‘Dunno,” Twilight sighed. His eyes remained fixed on the ceiling. He and Wild lay in opposite directions on his bed, their heads next to one another’s. Above them, the ceiling creaked as Time moved about his bedroom. 

“...He might not be, though, right?”

“‘Dunno.”

Wild hummed quietly, and Twilight could tell by his tone that he was struggling to remain calm. “Do you think he’d kick us out?”

Twilight stared hard at the ceiling, willing away the stinging in his eyes. 

He didn’t answer.

***

Hyrule was stretched out on the couch in Time’s study, his tablet propped up against his legs as he clicked through a practice test for the board exam. 

_ A 26-year-old Goron male presents to the emergency department for evaluation of shortness of breath. He has presented frequently over the past 4 months with— _

Something thumped loudly out in the hallway, startling Hyrule momentarily. He huffed softly with a shake of his head. 

_ ...over the past 4 months with shortness of breath, mild respiratory distress, and intermittent stridor. Oxygen saturations were normal— _

Two more thumps out in the hallway made him jump. Hyrule strained to listen, hearing someone softly curse before it was quiet again. 

_ ...Oxygen saturations were normal at each presentation. Empiric treatment with— _

The sound of something clattering to the floor and a louder expletive prompted him to hop up. Hyrule abandoned his tablet on the couch, pulling open the study door. 

“Wind, are you oka—”

Hyrule nearly collided with Twilight as he exited Wind’s room. He held a laundry basket under each arm, both piled high with what must be three week’s worth of Wind’s dirty laundry.

“Oh, sorry ‘Rule, I didn’t know you were up here.” 

“No worries.” Hyrule quirked a brow, a wry smile tugging at his lips. “Did you, uh, lose a bet?”

Twilight’s dead-eyed stare said it all. Hyrule snickered, watching him awkwardly heft both baskets down the stairs.

***

The townhouse was feeling just too crowded. There wasn’t a single place where they could sit together or hold hands or even just privately chat. Twilight and Wild bundled up in layers of flannel and hoodies and coats, deciding to go for a walk - even though it was frigid outside. 

The sun had set very early that afternoon, and Termina was aglow in shades of orange and white. They meandered through the streets, shivering against the winds that blew between tall buildings, tucking their faces into their scarves. Once they reached the park, the wind was lighter, more tolerable. 

“So you’d have to move back to Ordon, huh?”

“Yeah, probably.” 

They held one another’s gloved hands, parting when they came under the scrutiny of a streetlamp, coming together again only under the cover of darkness. 

“Maybe I could come visit?”

“My family…” Twilight paused longer than he wanted to. 

“Oh,” Wild softly spoke. He didn’t need to explain.

The silence between them was never uncomfortable, but Twilight could tell that Wild was mulling something over. 

“Where would you end up, Wild?”

“It doesn’t matter,” he answered automatically. He quickly turned to face Twilight, but it took him just a half-second too long to put that easygoing smile on his face. “I always figure something out.”

Still, Wild’s eyes were troubled. 

***

“Dinner’s almost ready!” 

Wild stirred a saucepan of bubbling marinara sauce on the stove before turning off the burner. He hefted a larger pot of boiling water toward the sink, pouring its contents into a waiting colander. 

Wind entered the kitchen at his announcement, sniffing the air. “Spaghetti for dinner?”

“Spaghetti with sweet sausage and a spicy marinara sauce, topped with grated parmesan and served with a side of toasted garlic bread.” Wild turned toward Wind with a smile and was startled to find the shorter boy frowning up at him. 

“I’m not in the mood for that tonight.” 

Legend snorted from his place at the kitchen table. Twilight glanced up from where he was busy laying place settings, narrowing his eyes. 

Wild smiled accommodatingly, but Twilight could see the stiffness in his posture. “If there’s something you’d like better, I could probably whip it up quick.”

“I like that mac and cheese you make.” Wind pulled up a stool at the long marble counter, smiling antagonistically. “The one with the four different kinds of cheese.” 

“Ah,” Wild smiled nervously, “that one would take a little over an hour to—”

Wind pulled his phone out of his pocket while Wild was speaking. He slowly, deliberately set it on the countertop between them. 

Twilight nearly cracked the glass that he set on the table. 

Wild stood straight and tall, his eyes widening even as he kept that customer service smile plastered on his face. “Sure, I think I have all the right kinds of cheese, I’ll start—”

“Enough.” Wind turned to find Twilight looming over him with all the threatening Old Man Aura he could muster. “Stop being a little shit.”

Wind swiveled on his stool, his cheshire grin unphased by Twilight’s menacing presence. “Does that mean you’re ready to face the music?”

Legend leaned closer to Warriors, whispering, “What are they fighting about now?” Wars shrugged, not lifting his eyes from his own phone. 

“This  _ isn’t funny, _ Wind,” Twilight hissed, slamming his hand on the countertop. “Cut it out already.” 

“Twi,” Wild tried nervously to intervene. 

“It’s not funny?” Wind tilted his head innocently. “Because you seemed to think  _ something _ was funny when you were giggling like a little—”

Twilight swung to grab Wind by the arm, but Wind was slippery. He shoved himself backward, toppling the stool and landing on his back on the floor. Wind crawled backward and snuck around the countertop as Twilight hefted the stool out of his way, stalking his way around the counter. Wild hopped up to sit on the countertop as first Wind, then Twilight scrambled past him. 

“Sorry, guys! Everything’s ready, someone just needs to serve!!” Wild tossed his apron over a chair on his way out of the kitchen. 

Warriors quirked a brow, still not glancing up from his phone. “Not it.” 

Twilight tore up the steps after Wind with Wild on his heels. He swung around the second floor landing, taking the stairs two at a time. He nearly had Wind by the top, but he overzealously tried to leap three stairs, getting caught and noisily tumbling onto the carpet. Wild landed on top of him with a grunt. 

“Hey Old Man!!”

Time looked up from his desk as Wind barrelled into his study. Seated on the couch, Hyrule didn’t react at all, merely turning a page in his textbook. 

“I have something you want to see.”

Twilight and Wild both made it to the doorway just in time to see Time taking Wind’s phone from his hands. Time’s expression was stony, his eye focused on the tiny screen as Wind reached around to scroll through two, three, four incriminating photos.

Twilight’s heart hit the bottom of his shoes. 

“Hyrule.” Time’s tone was unreadable. “Why don’t you go take a break?”

“It’s okay, I only have one more cha—” Hyrule looked up to see Wind’s antagonistic grin, Time grinding his teeth as he slowly rose from his chair, Twilight looking very pale in the doorway, and Wild looking like he was on the verge of tears. 

Hyrule took the long way around the couch to avoid Time as he made for the door. He passed Twilight and Wild a sympathetic look on his way out.

“Boys, come in here.” 

Twilight slowly straightened up, his heart pounding in his chest. “Wild hasn’t done anyth—”

“Both of you.” Time crossed his study, leaning against the bookcase and folding his arms across his broad chest. His gaze remained on the floor. “Come in, close the door, and have a seat.”

Twilight felt Wild’s clammy hand slip into his own and squeeze it momentarily before letting go. The two of them crept into the study, gently closing the door behind themselves, and settled stiffly onto Time’s green couch. 

The wall clock began a slow, mournful chime. 

_ One. _

Twilight spread his hands on the knees of his jeans, palms damp in his nervousness.

_ Two.  _

He’d never seen Wild sitting so straight and stiff before. His thousand yard stare was focused on absolutely nothing ahead of him. 

_ Three.  _

Wind stood a little off to the side. He could hardly believe his luck that he was going to get to watch Time lay into these two idiots.

_ Four.  _

The silence dragged on for hours, years, lifetimes. Twilight leaned forward, scrubbing his face with his hands in his nervousness. 

_ Five.  _

A sniffle next to him made Twilight lift his head. He caught Wild quickly swiping a hand across his cheek and felt his own heart fracture. 

_ Six.  _

Twilight lifted his eyes to glare at Wind who made a casually rude gesture in response. 

_ Seven.  _

“Wind, let me see your phone again.” 

Twilight watched as Time took a step toward Wind, holding out his hand for Wind’s phone. “Listen,” Twilight tried again, “it’s not what you—”

Time held up a hand, and Twilight’s jaw snapped shut. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and staring at the floor, watching Time’s shadow.

“There are surprisingly few things that will get you kicked out of my house, and this is one of them.”

Wild leaned forward too, miserably hiding his face in his hands as tears began in earnest. 

“You should be ashamed.” 

Time’s shadow lifted his hand, and Twilight screwed up his shoulders, waiting for the strike.

_ Smack!  _

“Ow, hey!” 

Twilight sat up, startled. Wind stood rubbing the back of his head. Time towered over him, disapproval scrawled in the lines on his face. 

“Outing someone like this? What’s the matter with you?” Time didn’t need to raise his voice to strike the fear of the goddess in all three of them. “I’ve given you a lot of leniency since you’ve been staying here, but this crosses the line, Wind. You’ve not only invaded their privacy, but you’ve clearly been holding this over their heads as though they’ve done something wrong.” 

Wind’s tone was indignant. “It’s not invading someone’s privacy if they’re doing it blatantly out in the open like tha—”

“Why come to me with this? Were you hoping I’d kick them out?”

“What?” Wind startled, his eyes flashing to Twilight for a second.  _ He was serious when he said that? _ “No, I didn’t thi—”

“So then you were just blackmailing them for fun.” 

Wind’s jaw snapped shut. When Time put it that blatantly, it didn’t sound so fun anymore.

“Have they done something to hurt you personally?”

Wind cast his gaze to the floor. “No.” 

“And is this harmful in some way to anyone else?”

“No.” Wind’s voice was quiet. 

Time tapped at Wind’s phone for a moment before it chirped to announce to the entire room that the photos had been deleted. He handed the phone back.

“If you do anything like this ever again, I will take you back to Outset myself,” Time warned. “You will not hold Twilight or Wild or anyone else hostage over who they love or what makes them happy. Intolerance will not be tolerated here.” 

Wind’s cheeks burned red in his shame. “Yes, sir.”

“Out,” Time ordered.

Wind didn’t look at any of them as he turned and exited the study. The slam of the door made his opinion known. 

“And you two.” 

Time rounded on Twilight and Wild with no less quiet fury than he had pinned Wind with. Twilight felt the blood draining from his extremities, his hands and feet suddenly ice cold. 

“The living room? Really??”

The pair blinked at him owlishly. 

“You have not one but  _ two bedrooms _ in this house.” Time spread his arms wide in his exasperation. “You officially have more private space here than I do! Honestly, you were practically asking to be caught.” 

Twilight and Wild shared a wide-eyed glance. Neither could speak. 

“I never thought ground rules like this needed to be set, but here we are.” Time pinched the bridge of his nose in his frustration. “No fooling around or nudity in communal spaces in this house. This includes outdoor spaces. And for the love of Hylia,” he sighed,  _ “please, _ nothing in my kitchen.”

Twilight and Wild both continued to openly stare at Time. “So,” Twilight’s voice cracked, and he cleared his throat to try again, “So you’re not… mad?”

Time looked surprised for a moment before a sad smile softened the lines of his face. “Goddess, no,” he murmured. “If the two of you are happy, why would I care?”

Wild had wrapped his arms around Time’s middle before Twilight even realized he was off of the couch. “I was so worried,” Wild’s words were muffled into Time’s shirt, “I thought you were going to hate us, I thought you’d be so mad, I thought—”

“Wild.” Time gently pressed his hands against Wild’s shoulders, trying to pry him off. “It’s okay, we really don’t need to—”

“Yes we do.” Twilight grinned as he stood too, wrapping both Time and Wild in a firm, relieved hug. 

“Oh, oh great,” Time sighed, setting a hand on each of their shoulders awkwardly. “Just… let me know when you’re finished.” 

They stood like that for several warm seconds before Wild finally pulled back first, wiping his face on his sleeve. He was smiling, though, and his smile was even broader as Twilight slid an arm around his shoulders. Twilight smiled up at Time, his eyes shining too.

“I worry about you two.” Time spared them both an exasperated smile. “I can’t protect you from everything, and it isn’t necessarily my place to do so, but if anyone in this house gives you any trouble, I will handle it personally.”

“Thanks,” Twilight whispered, squeezing Wild’s shoulder before letting him go. The pair turned to leave the study, Twilight holding the door to let Wild exit first. 

“And Twilight.” 

Twilight turned back to where Time stood over him, immediately and instinctively shrinking back from him. Time’s smile was easygoing, but the look in his eye was a blatant threat. 

“If you hurt him,” he murmured lowly, “I will kill you.” 

**Author's Note:**

> There were two themes in the existing Linkcest fics that bothered me. First, that the boys were worried that they might be kicked out of the house because of how they felt for one another, which is incredibly sad. Second, that the authors posting these heartfelt works only felt comfortable doing so either anonymously or under a pseudonym for fear of being ostracized by the LU community. I’m sure you see the unfortunate parallels here. 
> 
> Listen. Life is short, and life is hard. We are all locked up in our homes and climbing the walls looking for something to entertain ourselves with. If writing about two fictional boys kissing makes you happy, go for it. If writing about them doing more involved things makes you happy, then lube those boys up and have at. I might not agree with every ship for reasons of personal preference, but I’m also not going to tell you what you should or shouldn’t enjoy. Just tag it appropriately, please. 
> 
> I won’t be entertaining Linkcest ships in Townhouse AU canon. I am also not interested in telling people what they can or can’t write any more than I can tell someone who they should or shouldn’t love. I will always support an author’s right to tell the story that they feel needs to be told. 
> 
> Please support your content creators, and please - above all else - be kind to one another.


End file.
